Our generation lives in the era of new possibilities and achievements, in which the process of globalization has become a main feature of this century. Globalization seems pervasive. Thus, one might think that the cultures of the world should converge into a single homogenized global value system. But they are not... It seems that many components of culture can be shared between different countries: Muslim countries, Latin American countries, however the reality is not as it seems, the differences in people's way of life, in their beliefs, in the values they are quite evident. Not only do we find no evidence of convergence, we actually find that the gap between the value systems of rich countries and those of poor countries has grown, not diminished, over the past 20 years. (Inglehary, 2005). Furthermore, if in the 20th century people attempted to start sharing common values and focused on similarities, the 21st century is oriented towards cultural differences. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay For some groups of people, variety is the spice of life, they accept cultural differences in a positive light, something fun and mundane. . Dressing differently, trying strange foods, celebrating exotic holidays, attending colorful parties seem to them to be an opportunity to spend time having fun. In the Western world there is even an expression “celebration of cultural diversity”. (Michael Minkov, 2011). But what if cultural differences aren't about what we wear, or put in our mouths, or how we celebrate holidays? What if we were to think about cultural differences more deeply as something that reflects our values, beliefs, norms and behaviors? In this case our situations get worse, because going to a new county is not just about meeting new people, seeing the most spectacular views, visiting famous monuments, trying local cuisine or dancing traditional dances in some festivals, it's more about knowing how these people behave in everyday life, how they react, interpret some symbols, gesture, how they live. That's why nowadays we can face many difficulties when going abroad. "The happiest moment in human life, in my opinion, is departure for unknown lands", - said Richard Burton. However, it is also a great challenge for ourselves. Their way of life will probably be different from ours, their behavior will not be understood by us, which will make us feel uncomfortable, anxious, irritated and lost. You may overcome difficulties, become part of a new culture, adapt and feel free in the new country. It's about overcoming culture shock, which in recent years has become one of the most controversial topics in the research field. The issue of culture shock is quite broad and includes various aspects. More specifically, this work researches the adaptation process and culture shock experience of Ukrainian and Turkish students in Poland through similarities and differences between these tree cultures based on Hofstede's dimensions. Data collection methods consist of interviewing students representing these cultures and finding out how they adapt to new environments and overcome culture shock. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get Custom EssayTo understand what culture shock is, its aspects, causes and the way to overcome it, we should define what culture and cultural differences are.
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